Rafael Nadal set to ‘travel to Australia’ in major update to comeback plans
Rafael Nadal’s comeback could be near as the Spaniard will reportedly travel to Australia after Christmas. The 22-time Grand Slam champion has not played a match since January, when he injured his left psoas at the Australian Open. And that could now be the one of the tournaments he makes a return at as Nadal is preparing to make his way onto the match court in the coming weeks.
Nadal recently announced that he would be able to make a return to competition after months of uncertainty. The 37-year-old shut down his season back in May when he failed to make a comeback during the clay swing and later underwent arthroscopic surgery.
The Spaniard was initially hesitant to commit to a comeback but gave the green light a few weeks ago though he didn’t announce a set date or tournament for his return. It has now emerged that he could be back in action at the Australian Open. According to Cadena SER, the former world No 1 is set to make the trip Down Under after Christmas, when he will continue his comeback preparations before playing a warm-up tournament to get some matches under his belt.
If all goes well, he is expected to compete at the Australian Open. The outlet has also reported that Nadal will soon travel to his academy in Kuwait to continue upping the intensity of his training “in addition to participating in some events”. The 22-time Major winner would then head home to Mallorca before making the trip to Australia.
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It comes just weeks after Nadal announced that he would be making a comeback to professional tennis. “I sincerely believe that I will return to play,” the 37-year-old said at the Clinica del Tenis, per Marca.
“I can’t say at what level I’ll be able to return, but I’ve never lost the desire to play and now it seems that things are going in the right direction. I’m not ready to say whether it will be in one place or another, but I’m happy with how things are going.”
Nadal also confirmed that he would soon be giving more concrete details, adding: “A few weeks ago, I wasn’t in a position to say if I could come back, but the steps forward have been positive. I hope to be able to say something more concrete in the next few weeks…”
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While Nadal has yet to reveal any information himself, it seems that an announcement could be imminent. Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley has already shared his belief that the former world No 1 will confirm his participation in the first Grand Slam of the year.
“Rafa has been training, I follow him closely, probably every day, because he’s a massive drawcard for us,” Tiley said in Melbourne on Thursday. “He wants to play, he’s obviously planning on playing. It all depends on how he pulls up.
“Hopefully in the next week or the next two weeks, we get some specific confirmation of that. I’m certain Rafa will be here because he’s not going to want to miss the opportunity to repeat what he did a couple of years ago.”
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